The High and Lofty One Who Inhabits Eternity • Deshen Daily

For thus saith the high and lofty One That inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place… (Isaiah 57:15 KJV)

Awe in our hearts for God is the birthplace of profound worship and reverence for Him. The more we know the greatness of our God, the more we stand in awe of Who He is. This devotional examines two simple truths that reveal the almightiness and greatness of God: His nature in relationship to angels and His eternal dwelling place.

God is not in the same class as the angels. None of us question the reality that God is not a man, but it is easy to imagine He is one of the spirits amongst the angels. Although God is spirit, just as the angels are, He transcends the nature of angels. As Creator, He made the angels, and as the Almighty God, His Omnipresence fills heaven, earth,, and everything they contain. And the reason He fills heaven and its host is because He is outside of His creation, infinitely greater and higher. So remember that though God is spirit, just as the angels are spirit, He is not as one of the angels.

If God is above the created angels in heaven, He is also higher than the heavens. The Lord opened my understanding to this glorious truth one day when He showed me that the heaven, His dwelling place, and the residence of the angels, was created. Gen. 1:1 establishes this truth; Heaven had a beginning. Before He created the heavens, God was dwelling somewhere. Scripture is silent on the details of this eternal dwelling place of the Almighty God—certainly because it is not essential for our salvation or relationship with God now!

Paul gives us a subtle clue of God’s transcendent greatness over the angels and heavens. Christ “ascended far above all heavens that he might fill all things ” (Ephesians 4:10 KJV). When Christ ascended, He moved into His place as God, beyond our first heaven, the second heaven, and the third heavens where God dwells amongst the angels—He ascending far above ALL heavens!

So when God created the heavens, He stepped down from His eternal dwelling place to dwell in heaven amongst the angels. And when He founded His Church, He stepped down again to permanently dwell on earth amongst people. How great and awesome is our God!

How does Paul call the highest heaven where God dwellings? ( See 1 Cor. 12:2)